Soldier Girls: The Battles of Three Women at Home and at War

Thorpe traces the lives of three women in the Indiana National Guard who served in Afghanistan and Iraq, highlighting how profoundly military service changed their lives and the lives of their families. Reader Postel keeps a steady pace, but her tone is flat most of the time, often sounding automated. These dry spells are relieved by the sections with multiple first-person accounts, when Postel makes use of different voices and livens up her narration. She differentiates the voices of the three women and their family quite well, distinguishing them all and using a commanding or compassionate tone depending on the context. A Scribner hardcover. (Sept.)